Patterning mechanism for a warp knitting machine

ABSTRACT

THE LENGTH OF ALL ENDWISE MOVEMENTS OF A GUIDE BAR ON A WARP KNITTING MACHINE IS INCREASED OR DECREASED IN THE SAME RATIO WITHOUT CHANGING THE PATTERN DRUM AND/OR CHAIN BY SHIFTING THE POINT OF ENGAGEMENT BETWEEN A ROLLER ON THE ASSOCIATED SHOGGING LEVER AND THE PATTERN DRUM OR CHAIN IN A RADIAL DIRECTION RELATIVE TO THE PIVOT AXIS ABOUT WHICH THE SHOGGING LEVER OSCILLATES. THE ROLLER MAY BE SHIFTED ALONG THE LEVER, OR THE PATTERN DRUM MOUNTING SHIFTED ON THE MACHINE FRAME, OR BOTH.

Jan. 5, 1971- OH; 3,552,153

PATTERNING MECHANISM FOR A WARP KNITTING MACHINE Filed Nov. 17, 1967 V H 'II U 7 51/ T 17 15 United States Patent O Int. Cl. D4b 15/66 US. Cl. 66-154 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The length of all endwise movements of a guide bar on a warp knitting machine is increased or decreased in the same ratio without changing the pattern drum and/ or chain by shifting the point of engagement between a roller on the associated shogging lever and the pattern drum or chain in a radial direction relative to the pivot axis about which the shogging lever oscillates. The roller may be shifted along the lever, or the pattern drum mounting shifted on the machine frame, or both.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to patterning mechanisms for warp knitting machines, and more particularly to a patterning mechanism capable of adjustment for changes in needle gage.

When the needle gage on a conventional warp knitting machine is to be changed, the length of all endwise move ments of the guide bars must be adjusted in a uniform ratio. This can be achieved in most knitting machines now in commercial operation only by replacing all links of the pattern chains. In Raschel machines having up to thirty guide bars and a corresponding number of pattern chains and shogging levers, the labor required for the change is subsdtantial, and significantly affects the cost of the knitted goo s.

Attempts have been made to avoid the need for a replacement of the pattern chains by adjusting the effective length of the shogging levers. Two or more pivots were provided for each lever, and the levers were secured to suitably selected pivots. This arrangement has not been fully satisfactory. A hardened steel roller on the lever engages the cam faces of the pattern chain for oscillating the lever while the pattern drum rotates. If the effective length of the lever is changed much in the manner outlined above, the path of the roller cannot always be as precisely radial relative to the pattern drum axis as is desirable for precise control of endwise guide bar movement by the pattern chain. If the roller path is unduly inclined relative to a radius on the pattern drum axis, the knitted goods produced may be defective.

The object of the invention is the provision of simple means for changing the eifective length of shogging levers while maintaining a roller path which is practically radial relative to the pattern drum.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In one of its aspects, this invention resides in mounting means interposed between the pattern drum assembly and the supporting machine frame, and fastening means which permit the mounting means to be fixedly fastened to the frame in each of a plurality of positions radially offset from each other relative to the pivot axis of the associated shogging lever.

A particularly simple adjustment of the effective length of the shogging lever length is available if the several positions of the mounting means are offset along a substantially straight line, and if a radius drawn on the pivot axis 3,552,153 Patented Jan. 5, 1971 of the shogging lever through the roller defines an angle of less than 45 with the straight line in all positions of the shogging lever during the oscillating movement of the same.

Other features, additional objects and many of the attendant advantages of this invention will readily be appreciated as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description of preferred embodiments when considered in connection with the accompanying drawing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 shows a patterning mechanism of the invention in front elevation, and partly in section;

FIG. 1a shows a modified shogging lever for the mechanism of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 2 illustrates a modified patterning mechanism of the invention in front elevation.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring now to the drawing in detail, and initially toshown but it will be appreciated that there are as many' such levers as there are guide bars in the machine, the guide bars themselves not being shown in the drawing.

A shaft 2 pivotally attaches the lever 1 to a pillow block 3 which is a portion of the stationary machine frame. The lever 1 is oscillated about the axis of the shaft 2 by camming engagement of a hardened steel roller 4 on the lever with the links of a pattern chain 5 which is trained over a pattern drum 6. The free upper end 7 of the lever 1 is attached by a connecting rod 8 with an associated guide bar, not itself seen in FIG. 1, and moves horizontally back and forth when the lever 1 oscillates about the axis of the shaft 2.

The roller 4 is mounted on a carrier 9 arranged to be attached to any longitudinal portion of a narrow face 10 of the lever 1 which is directed toward the drum 6. The face 10 is elongated approximately in the direction of a radius drawn on the pivot axis of the lever 1 in the shaft 2, and has a radial dovetail groove 10'. The heads 9a of two bolts are received in the groove 10. The shafts of the bolts pass through openings in the carrier 9 and the free ends of the shafts are provided with nuts 9b. The heads 9a are shaped for conforming engagement with the side walls of the groove 10 when the nuts 9b are tightened, as will be described with reference to FIG. 1a, whereby the carrier 9 may be fixedly attached to each of the several, contiguously consecutive, radially offset portions of the face 10 along the groove 10.

The position of the drum 6 with its chain 5 may be changed vertically, as indicated by the double arrow 12, and horizontally, as indicated by the double arrow 11, all adjusting movements of the drum and chain being in the plane of oscillation of the lever 1. The drum 6 is rotatably mounted on a base 13 which has a bottom flange 13a. Bolts 14 on the flange 13a have heads 15 which are received in a dovetail groove 16 of a plate 17 carrying the afore-described pillow block 3. Nuts 18 on the bolts 14 perm-it the mounting block 13 to be fixedly fastened to the supporting frame structure in any number of positions along the groove 16 which are offset radially from each other relative to the pivot axis of the lever 1 along a straight line.

While the arrangement illustrated in FIG. 1 permits the positions of the roller 4 and of the drum 6 to be adjusted continuously in a radial direction, the vertical adjustment of the pattern drum 6 is achieved in steps only by replacing the mounting block 13 by a lower block, as indicated in broken lines at 13b. For any practical change in the effective length of the lever 1 between the pivot axis of the shaft 2 and the roller 4, the position of the drum 6 can be adjusted in such a manner that the roller moves quite precisely along a line 19 which is radial relative to the axis of rotation of the drum 6 while the drum rotates, and while the lever 1 is oscillated by the links of the chain 5 and the engaged roller 4.

In the modified lever 1 shown in FIG. 1a, the radial groove is replaced by five short dovetail grooves 10b which are radially spaced along the narrow radial face of the lever 1'. In the illustrated position, the heads 9a of the bolts 90 which attach the carrier 9 to the lever 1' are received in the two grooves 10b farthest from the pivot axis of the lever. Four other radially spaced positions are available for the roller 4 on the lever 1' which may replace the lever 1 in the apparatus of FIG. 1. The heads 9a are of trapezoidal cross section for conforming engagement with the walls of the dovetail grooves 10b.

The partly modified patterning mechanism illustrated in FIG. 2 has a pattern drum 6 mounted on a relatively low base 130 releasably attached to a supporting plate 17 of the knitting machine frame by clamping bolts 14 which permit the block 13c to be shifted radially toward and away from the pivot axis of a shogging lever 1", as indicated by the double arrow 11.

The lever 1 has a face 10a which is parallel to a radius drawn on the pivot axis of the lever 1" through the roller 4 and defines an angle of approximately with the horizontal direction of linear adjusting movement of the base 130.

The roller 4 is mounted on the face 10a of the lever 1" by means of a carrier 9 which is radially adjustably fastened to the face 10a in the manner more fully described with reference to FIG. 1, but not shown in FIG. 2.

As long as the angle defined by the face 10a and the direction of adjusting movement 11 of the drum 6 does not exceed 45, the modified apparatus permits the effective length of the lever 1" between the roller 4 and the pivot axis of the lever 1" to be varied over a wide range without vertically shifting the axis of the drum 6. The deviation of the roller path from a line 19 drawn through the axis of the drum 6 and the point of contact between the roller 4 and the chain 5 is not sufficient in this arrangement to cause significant defects in the fabric knitted.

While the invention has been described with particular reference to specific embodiments, it is to be understood that it is not limited thereto, but is to be construed broadly and restricted solely by the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a patterning mechanism for a warp knitting machine including a support, a shogging lever having one end portion secured to said support for oscillating movement of another end portion of the lever about a fixed pivot axis, a roller, first mounting means mounting said roller on said lever in radially spaced relationship to said axis, pattern drum means mounted on said support for angular movement about an axis of rotation and cammingly engaging said roller during said angular movement for thereby oscillating the lever, and connecting means for connecting said other end portion to a guide bar of said knitting machine; the improvement which consists in adjusting means for varying the amplitude of oscillation of said shogging lever while keeping the cammingly engaged roller in a path substantially radial relative to said axis of rotation, the adjusting means including second mounting means interposed between said pattern drum means and said support and carrying said pattern drum means; and fastening means for fixedly fastening said mounting means to said support in each of a plurality of positions radially offset from each other relative to said pivot axis.

2. In a mechanism as set forth in claim 1, said plurality of positions of said mounting means being offset from each other along a substantially straight line, a radius drawn on said pivot axis through said roller and said straight line defining an angle of less than during said oscillating movement of said lever.

3. In a mechanism as set forth in claim 2, said connecting means moving in a path substantially parallel to said straight line when said lever oscillates.

4. In a mechanism as set forth in claim 1, said adjusting means including a face on said lever extending radially relative to said pivot axis, and securing means in said first mounting means for securing said roller to each of a plurality of portions of said face, said portions being radially offset from each other relative to said pivot axis.

5. In a mechanism as set forth in claim 4, said securing means including a carrier, said roller being mounted on said carrier, and attaching means for attaching said carrier to each of said portions of said face.

6. In a mechanism as set forth in claim 5, said portions being contiguously consecutive.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 697,998 4/1902 Duncan 248-23 768,041 8/1904 George 248-23X 1,605,567 11/1926 Sexton 248-23 2,170,697 8/1939 Richter 66-86 2,204,402 6/1940 Cooper 248-23 2,628,047 2/1953 Herder et al 248-23 2,874,815 2/1959 Hoffman 248-23X 2,888,815 6/1959 Jacoby et al. 66-195 2,688,860 9/1954 Lambach 66-86 2,940,297 6/ 1960 Mayer 248-23X 3,021,100 2/1962 Verhota 248-23 3,066,898 12/1962 Haynes 248-23 3,236,379 2/1966 Brauchla 248-23X 3,357,661 12/1967 Aakjar 248-23 FOREIGN PATENTS 494,727 3/1930 Germany 66-154 67,336 4/ 1940 Czechoslovakia 248-23 817,665 9/1937 France 248-23 288,929 9/1931 Italy 248-23 RONALD FELDBAUM, Primary Examiner 

